Vol. 502 No. 5
71 Mr. McGuinness asked the Minister for Social, Community and Family Affairs if his Department has received an application for funding from the Irish Wheelchair Association, County Carlow; and if the application will be expedited with a view to giving a positive reply in view of the pressure on the group involved. [8614/99]
My Department has for a number of years operated a range of grants schemes which concentrate on a wide range of support for local self-help groups, community development, welfare rights and information work, and on the provision of seed money to enable community groups to pilot initiatives identified as meeting new emerging community needs.
The group referred to in the Deputy's question received a once-off grant of £750 from my Department in 1998 under the scheme of grants to locally based community and family support groups.
My Department has not received an application for funding from the group under this year's schemes of grants. The group should contact my Department's regional office in the south-east for further information.
However, I should point out that funding is not available from this Department towards the provision of services, as opposed to once-off grants, which are the responsibility of other statutory agencies. In this case, the health services have responsibility for funding services for people with disabilities and the group should look to the South-Eastern Health Board.
